Mortlake saddling up for double muster

HOOF beats will again drum up visions of colonial Australia as the sun goes down in Mortlake.

Organisers of the Mortlake Muster are using the Australia Day weekend to pay homage to the nation’s bygone colonial era. Up to 30 horses have been trained for the show — one of the biggest biennial events on the district’s calendar.

Mortlake Muster president Ann Dodds said the two-hour performance was a storyline made with a mesh of history.

“We have Banjo Patterson who is sick of city life and is looking for his friend Clancy,” she said.

“We’ve got a whole team of horses which are trained for drill patterns and crossovers … they do their own version of a line dance.

“It’s purely an Australiana night and there’s some comedy thrown in as well.” There will also be live music performances.

The 2012 event drew big crowds — enough so that this year’s muster has dates on Saturday, January 25, and Sunday, January 26, at Tea Tree Lake from 8pm.

“Originally it started in 2004 …we got a good response last time so we thought we’d expand it,” Ms Dodds said.

The event is also a key fund-raiser for the Mortlake community’s emergency services, including the SES and CFA.